take; both; accept; serious; possible; chance; special; one; either; into; receive |
New Year's Eve is always a good for people to be with family and enjoy a time of relaxation. But for 57-year-old David Bennett, the New Year's Eve was uneasy and life-changing.
Bennett comes from the US. He was ill with heart disease. Doctors reviewed all his medical records, and said that Bennett only had one choice for survival—to have a heart transplant (移植).
Surprisingly, rather than a human heart, Bennett received a pig heart. Don't worry. It was not a common pig but a pig.
Ten genes in the pig were changed to make it for the transplant. Researchers knocked out three genes that a human body can't . A growth gene was out to prevent the pig heart from continuing to grow after the transplant. Researchers also inserted (注入) six genes that control the human body's acceptance of the pig heart.
The transplant was the of its kind and it was quite challenging. Bennett said, "It was die or do this transplant. I want to live. I knew it was a shot in the dark, but it was my last choice." The good thing is that Bennett recovered pretty well after the surgery, according to his doctors.
Dr. Bartley Griffith, who surgically transplanted the pig heart the patient, said, "This is a breakthrough surgery and brings us one step closer to solving the organ shortage crisis."
